Union calls for rethink over manufacturing

The GMB, a union which represents workers across the country’s industrial sectors, says their analysis shows 90,000 north west manufacturing jobs have been lost over the last decade.

The statistics are being released ahead of GMB’s Annual Congress, which begins in Brighton on Sunday.

They show 93,400 jobs in the sector disappeared between 2008 and 2018 – a fall of 21 per cent – making the North West the worst hit area in the UK.

In 2008, the North West supported 438,000 permanent and temporary manufacturing jobs. By 2018, that had slumped to just 344,000.

The GMB’s Making It campaign is calling on the Government to invest in manufacturing and protect manufacturing jobs during Brexit.

Jude Brimble, GMB National Secretary, said: “More than 90,000 manufacturing job losses in just 10 years have been devastating for the North West and unless action is taken, it looks like the worst could still be to come. This is why GMB Union’s Making It campaign calls for a rethink on Government procurement and renewed investment in skills and jobs.”